Sheet-feeding machine



G. A. ROBINSON. sum FEEDING MACHINE. APPLICATION FIYLED MAY 4, 1920. I

' I Patented May 31, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET l- G. A. ROBINSON.

SHEET FEEDING MACHINE.

APPLICATlON FILED MAY 4. 1920.

, 1,379,938. Patented May 31,1921.v

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

' G. A. ROBINSON, SHEET FEEDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 4. 1920.

..1 379 938; mma MaySl, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

Iva-067176070 barren stars lea-rear ser es.

GEORGE A. ROBINSON, OF QUINCY, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO PNEUMATi'Q SCALE CORPORATION, LIMITED, OF QUINCY, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION 01? MAIN E.

SHEET-FEEDING- MACHINE.

Patented May 31, 1921.

Application filed May 4., 1920. Serial No. 378,849. f

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE A. RoBINsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Quincy,fcounty,of Norfolk, State of Massachusetts, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Sl1eet-Feeding Machines, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

The invention relates to a new and useful improvement in sheet feeding machines. It

relates to that class of sheet feeding machines in which sheets of paper or other materlals are automatically fed from a pile of sheets toother mechanism for performing further operation upon the sheet, or to enable it to be transferred to some ther location or for any purpose whatever. It is further especially applicable to machines in wh ch the blanks are arranged in a pile or stack upon a vertically movable support in which the stack is intermittently elevated to bring the top sheet into position to be acted upon by the feed andin which the removal ofone or more sheets from the top of the pile controls the operation of the elevating mechanism.

The invention will be fully understood from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying draw ings, the novel features thereof w1ll be pointed out and clearly defined in. the claims at the close of this specification.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of a machine embodying the invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the machine shown in F ig. 1, viewed from the left side of the machine facing it, that is from the lower side of Fig. 1.

3 is a section on line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4; is a view showing in detail the combing roll actuating mechanism.

Fig; 5 is a detail view of the driving mechanism of the cam which releases the combing roll. Y r

Fig. 6 shows the train of gears on the back side of the device for driving the comb ing roll sbaftand feed roll shaft.

Fig. 7 is a detail view of the trippingdevice for tripping the feed.

Fig. 8- is a detail of the combing roll showing the arrangement of the driving gears, viewed on the opposite side from Fig. 3.

Fig. '9 'isa detail of the spring on the and is turned an tripping shaft and'the adjustment therefor,

viewed on the opposite side from Fig. 3.

Referring now to the drawings, the sheets are piled up in a stack A on a table 2 which is carried by a rack 8 in suitable guides. The racl; is capable 'ofloeing raised by m'eansof a pinion 4' which is mounted on a shaft 5 ournaled in a bearing 6 in the side frame, automatic device to be hereinafter described which raises the elevator table 2 (see Figs. 1, 2 and 3) on which the blanks are supported and therefore raises the stack of sheets as fast as they are fed This raising of the elevator is the position of the top-0f the off the top. controlled by pile of scribed.

@n the elevator shaft 5 there is mounted a'ratchet Loose on said shaft 5 is'a pawl carrier 8 (see Fig. 2) which carries a pawl 9 pivoted thereto, which is held in engagement with the teeth of the ratchet by a spring 10. This pawl carrier is provided with a pointed latch 11 pivoted thereto for paper, as will be hereinafter dethepurpose which willbe described hereinafter. Y

The pawl carrier is also provided with a curved arm 12 which carries a roll 13 which engages with a'cam driven feed roll shaft 15. This roll is normally'held in contact with the cam It by means. of a spring 16. 'A pawl 17 is also provided, which is mounted on a'istud 18 projected from the side frame 19, and which 14 on the constantlyengages with theratchet 7 to holdit in position' as it is turned by the actionof the pawl 9, that is, to hold it from slipping backward.

As the cam 14 rotates and engages with the roll 13 carried on the arm 12,the pawl carrier 8 is rocked on the shaft 5 in such manner that the pawl 9 picks up one tooth at each revolution of the cam and'rotates' the ratchet through an are equal to the distance between two of the ratchet teeth, thus raising the elevator table 2 slightly at each rotation of the cam.

A shaft 20 is provided (see Figs. 1, 2 and 3) the outer.v end of which is provided with a clamp 21 whichcarri'es a downwardly eX- tending rod 22 formedxwith a notch 23. This rod and notch are so located that under certain conditions the notch is adapted to be engaged by the latch 11 on the pawl carbearing hub 31 rier. The other end of said shaft 20 is provided with a clamp 24 similar to the clamp 21, and held by said clamp is a finger 25 which projects over the top of the pile of blanks and engages the blanks about centrally of the top of the pile. The end of the finger rests by its own weight on the top sheet of the stack. As the elevator table 2 rises, the top of the pile lifts this finger, rocking the shaft 20 in clockwise direction and swings the rod 22, which as already stated is clamped to said shaft, into a position where the latch 11 on the pawl carrier will engage with said notch, that is it will swing the rod 22 to the left as viewed in Fig. 2 into the position shown in said Fig. 2. By this means the pawl carrier 12 is held from returning under the stress of the spring 16 to a position where except for such retention by the latch 11 it would be actuated by the high point to rock the pawl carrier in a counter-clockwise direction, and thereby actuate the pawl 9 to turn the ratchet 7. This prevents the elevator table 2 and the stack of blanks from being raised any further until one or more of the sheets have been fed from the stack to lower the level of the top of the stack sufficiently to release the notched rod 22 from the latch 11, as will be hereinafter described. The latch 11 is pivoted to the pawl carrier at 26 and is provided with a spring 27 which holds the latch normally in position to engage the notch 23 and the rod 22, but allows the latch to be turned back on its pivot under pressure which overcomes the spring. See Fig. 2.

The sheets in the stack are fed forward by means of a combing wheel or roll 28, which combs the top sheets out fan-like and advances the top sheet with which the combing wheel is engaged, a short distance ahead of the sheet next beneath it. The combing wheel is a disk or roll provided with a series of cylindrical rolls 29 around its circumference which are mounted loosely on pins and are free to rotate. These rolls are preferably made of fiber or leather, or some like material which will not injure the paper. The combing wheel is mounted on a constantly driven shaft '38 journaled in a forked yoke, comprising two arms 30-301 and a which is loosely mounted on a constantly driven shaft 32 journaled in bearings in the side frame of the machine. The shaft 38 is provided with a gear 33 which meshes with a pinion 34 mounted on a stud 35 carried by the arm 301 of the combing roll yoke (see Fig. 8). The pinion 34 in turn meshes with a gear 36 on one end of the shaft 32 on which the hub 31 of the combing roll yoke is mounted. The other end of the combing roll shaft 38 is provided with a gear 37 which preferably is of smaller diameter than the gear 33, and

of the cam 14 which are coiled the springs 45.

the ratchet 47 said gear 37 meshes with a gear 39 mounted on the sleeve 40 which is loose on the yoke carrying shaft 32. Said sleeve 40 is which bears against the end hub 31 (see Figs. .1 and This flange 41 causes the gear 39 to rotate with it, as will be hereinafter described. The gear 39 is formed with a web 391, and fiber washers 42-43 are respectively provided on opposite sides of. the web, the washer 42 being located between the flange 41. and the web, and the washer 43 being between the web and a steel ring 44 which presses against the said washerv 43, and therefore makes fric-- tional engagement of the washer 43 with the web 391 of the gear 39 under a yielding pressure exerted by the springs 45. Projecting laterally from the. side of the said steel ring 44 are a series of pins 46 around On the outer end of the sleeve 40 is a ratchet 47 which is fast to the said sleeve. One end of each spring 45 bears against the side of and the other end of the spring bears against the washer 44. The coiled springs force the steel ring 44 against the washer 43 and thereby press together yieldingly the web of the gear 39, the washer formed with a flange 41 of the roll yoke 42 and the flange 41 of the sleeve 401 Thus t the gear 39 and the sleeve 40 are held in engagement with each other so that the rotation of the sleeve 49 is imparted to the gear 39. The sleeve 40 is mounted loosely on the shaft 32.

As the shaft 32 rotates, the gear 36 mounted thereon is driven, and through the intermediate gears 34 and 33 the combing roll or wheel 28 is rotated in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 3, and the 37 drives the gear 39 together with the sleeve 40 and the ratchet 47 through the frictional engagement of the gear 39 with the fiber washers. The gear 36 is fast to the all yoke shaft 32. The gear 39 and the ratchet 47 are both loose on the shaft move together.

A. tripping shaft 48 is mounted loosely in hearings in the two side frames (see Figs. 1 and These bearings may be of suitable form but ball bearings are found preferably as it is necessary for this shaft to turn very freely and be very sensitive. At one end of this shaft is provided an arm 50 to which is attached a spring 51, the other end of said spring being attached to an adjustable support, (see Figs. 1 and This spr'ng tends to rock the shaft 48 in a counter-clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 3. This shaft is provided with a clamp 52 on which is pivotally mounted a finger 53. The outer end of said finger is pointed and is located in a position so that its pointed end is close to the ratchet 47. The tripping shaft 48 carries another clamp 54 which is provided with a finger which extends down into the path of the sheet of paper as it is fed forward by the combing roll. Said finger 55 is shown in the drawings, Fig. 3, as being bent toward its lower end.

A constantly driven roll 56, which I term the feed roll, is located just below the end of the finger 55 and receives on its upper surface the advancing end of the topmost sheet A (see Fig. 3). The lower end of the finger 55 extends into a groove in the periphery of the feed roll 56, as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 3. Above this feed roll 56 is a roll 57 which I term a drop roll, and is carried by an arm 58 mounted on a shaft 59. This drop roll is adapted to be lowered into engagement with the constantly driven roll 56 at a certain definite time by means of a cam 60. This cam 60 is shown by dotted lines in Fig. 2, and is mounted on the same shaft 15 as the cam 14. This cam 60 engages with a roll 61 on the end of an arm 62 which is mounted fast on the shaft 59 which carries the arm 58 on which the drop roll 57 is mounted. The cam roll 61 is held in engagement with the cam 60 by means of a spring 63 which surrounds a pin 6d extending vertically up from the arm 62.

The cams 14 and 60, which respectively actuate the elevator mechanism and the drop roll, are carried loosely on the feed roll shaft 15 outside of the side frame 19. These two cams are formed preferably in one piece (see Figs. 1 and 2); they may, however, be made separately and rigidly connected together.

The cam 14 is made hollow (see Fig. 5) and isformed with an annular gear 65 on the inside. Mounted on the same shaft 15 as the feed roll and the cams 14C and 60 is a gear plate 66 (see Figs. 1 and 2). The outer circumference of this gear plate is formed with worm gear teeth which mesh with a worm 67 on a shaft 68 mounted in suitable bearings 69-69 (se Fig. 2). This worm shaft extends upward and is provided with a pin 70 to enable it to be turned by hand. The upper bearing 69 for the worm shaft is provided with a spring friction 71 to form some resistance to the rotation of the worm shaft so as to hold it in position after it has been turned by hand for adjustment.

The worm gear plate 66 is provided with two studs 72, 73 on which are respectively mounted the pinions 7 1 and 1 5.; These pinions mesh with each other; and the pinion 7 5 meshes with the annular gear 65 on the I inside of the cam 14, and the other pinion, 74;, meshes with a spur gear 7 6 mounted on the feed roll shaft 15, (see Figs. 2 and The werm gear plate 66 does not revolve except when it is adjusted by means of the worm 67. It is normally held from rotation by means of the worm 67 which is stationary and which is rotated by the handle 7( when desired for purposes of adjustment. This arrangement of the worm and worm gear is merely for adjustment in timing up the device in case the paper feed shall be used with another machine where it is desired that the sheet of paper shall be fed at a definite time different from that at which it was previously fed.

By rotating this worm gear plate,-the cams 14 and 60 are advanced-or retarded in relation to the feed roll shaft 15, thus causing the arm 62 which controls the drop roll 57 to be actuated earlier or later as thecase may be,

The roll yoke shaft 32 and the feed roll shaft 15 are driven. constantly. On the roll yoke shaft 32 is mounted a gear 77 and on the feed roll shaft 15 is mounted a gear 78.

The gear 7 8 meshes with a gear 79 which is loose on a stud 80 in a side frame, and said gear 7 9 is fast to a sprocket wheel 81. See Fig. 6. This sprocket wheel gear 7 9 meshes with a pinion 82 loose on a stud 180, which pinion in turn engages with the gear 77 on the roll yoke shaft; By driving the sprocket 81 in any suitable manner, the two shafts 32 and 15 are caused to rotate.

The action of the fingers 55 and 53 is as follows: The combing roll 28 is normally in contact with the top of the pile of paper and remains in that position merely by its own weight and the weight of the parts shown on the combing roll yoke. The combing wheel or roll 28 rotates clockwise as viewed in Fig. 3 and the action of the combing roll tends to comb the sheets out in the left-hand direction as viewed in said figure. The top sheet is combed forward and advanced until the forward edge strikes the finger 55. The continued advance of the sheet swings'the fin 'er 55 toward the left as viewed in said figure, thereby rocking the tripping shaft 48 Y and swinging the finger 53 down into'a position where the point of the finger engages the teeth of the ratchet 47. As this occurs, the push of the ratchet teeth against the end of the lever 53 tends to rock the trip shaft a slight amount further clockwise, due to the fact that the finger 53 has a pivoted connection with the clamp 52 on said trip shaft, and thereby swings the finger 55 further 'to the left from the position shown in Fig. 3,

and thus swings it up above the sheet of paper. This position is shown in Fig. 7. A stop 83 is provided, (see Fig. 9), which is engaged by the arm 50 to preventthe tripping shaft from rocking more than a fixed amount, that is only-enough to permit the parts to move into the position shown in Fig. 7

When the parts have reached the position shown in Fig. 7 the engagement of the finger 53 with the ratchet 47 stops the further rotation of the. ratchet d7. Inasmuch as the ratchet a7 is fast to the sleeve L0. the sleeve a0 is also held from further rotation and by reason of the frictional contact of the two fiber washers 4.2 and a3 against the web 391 of the gear 39, there is set up a resistance to the rotation of the said gear 39.

The shaft '38 on which the combing roll is mounted is constantly driven, as previously stated by connection with the constantly driven shaft 32 through a train of gears 33, 34c and 36.v As the frictional resistance to turning is applied to the gear 39, the rotation of the combing wheel and of the pinion 3? tends to rock the combing roll yoke about the shaft 32 in the same direction as the rotation of the shaft, which action will raise the combing roll from contact with the sheets of paper in the stack.

The combing roll yoke arm 301 is provided with a forked portion having branches 84-85, which straddle tae releasing shaft 86, the arms 8e--85 being spaced apart wider than the diameter of the releasing shaft 86 so as to allow a slight rocking movement of the said arms relative to said shaft. The arm 84E engaging with the shaft serves as a stop to limit the uppermost position of the yoke and the arm serves as a stop to limit the lowermost position of the combing roll yoke, and therefore limits the up-and-down movement of the combing roll shaft 87 by reason of the engagement of one or the other of said stop arms 84E85 with the releasing shaft 86. Said releasing shaft will be more particularly described hereinafter.

When the combing roll 28 has been moved into its position out of contact with the sheets the action on the sheets of paper ceases and the top sheet A is left with its forward edge in a position where it will be engaged by the drop roll 57 when the said drop roll descends toward the feed roll. When this drop roll is lowered by means of the cam action previously described the top sheet of paper will be gripped between the drop roll and the feed roll 56, and will be withdrawn from the stack by reason of the feed action of said rolls 5857. and then the drop roll 5'? is returned to its upper position as shown in 8, so that it will be out of contact with the feed roll and not interfere with the forward. feed of the next sheet.

As this top sheet is withdrawn from the stack it is desirable to hold the next lower sheet from movementso that the frictional contact between the said two sheets will not cause the lower sheet to be displaced or withdrawn from the stack with the topmost This next lower sheet is held by sheet. means of a finger 87 (see Figs. 1 and f). A rocker shaft 88 mounted in suit-ab] e bearings (see Fig.4) carries a clamp 89 which in turn carries a rod 90 having at its end a curved finger 87 which extends over the reven e middle of the top of the stack A (see Figs. 1 and 4c). Mounted on the same rocker shaft 88 is a cam lever 91 which carries at its outer end a cam roll The finger 87 is fastened to the clamp 89 by screws 94. This roll 92 is engaged by a cam surface 93 mounted or formed on the combing roll yoke hub 31 (see Fig. 4f), so that as the combing roll yoke is rocked about its shaft 32, the cam surface 98 will act on the cam roll 92 on the cam lever 91 and thus rock the shaft- 88 and force the finger 87 down onto the pile of paper, as shown in Fig. at. This finger 87 while fast to the rocker shaft 88 is adjustably mounted in such a way that it may be moved forward and back in the longitudinal direction of the shaft 88 to bring it into a position so that it strikes the pile of paper just back of the rear dge of the top sheet and engages with the rear portion of the second sheet to hold it there. This adjustment may be obtained by loosening the clamping screw 104 (see Fig. 4) and then setting up the clamping screw again after the rod 90 is adjusted.

When the finger 87 is brought into on with the said second sheet of paper in the stack, it is necessary to provide means for releasing the finger 53 from engagement with the ratchet 4.7 to allow the finger 53 to resume its original position, as shown in Fig. 3, and also to allow the comb ing roll 28 to drop again into contact with the pile of paper to advance another sheet. Mounted in bearings in the side frame 19 is a releasing shaft 86 which carries an upwardly extending arm 95 shown in Fig. 3. A. pin 96 set in said arm 95 near its upper end carries an angularly-shaped pawl 97 one side of which in the position as shown in Fig. 3. is in contact with the releasing shaft 88 to hold the pawl in the positioii shown with its point out of engagement with the ratchet. On the outer end of said releasing shaft 86 is mounted a cam lever 98 (see Figs. 1 and 2) which carries a roll 99, said roll being engaged by the cam 14 on the feed roll shaft 15 and held in engagement by a spring 103. See Fig. 2. This is the same cam which operatesthe elevator raising mechanism. As the cam actuates the cam lever 98 to rock the releasing shaft 86, the first action is to lower the point of the pawl 96 into engagement with the ratchet J7. and the further rotation of the releasing shaft 86 will cause the lever 95 to move further to the right as viewed in Fig. 3, and push the pawl to the right to rotate the ratchet 47 in a clockwise direction. This rotation of the ratchet allows the tripping finger 53 to be moved out of engagement with the ratchet by the action of the spring 51. See Fig. 9.

The continued rotation of the cam 14 causes the releasing shaft 86 to be rocked back counter-clockwise as the low part of the cam is reached and to withdraw the pawl 97 carried by the arm on said shaft from contact with the teeth of the ratchet 47. This releasing of the ratchet 47 allows the sleeve 10 which carries the ratchet 17 to beg n to rotate freely upon the rollyoke shaft 32, and thus the frictional resistance combing roll will feed the sheet forward so that it will be engaged by the feed roll and fed from the machine at a later time than is intended. In case the device is used in con nection with the other mechanism for performing some other operation upon the sheet, it is desirable to have the sheet started forward at a time when the drop roll engages it with the feed roll. Means are provided whereby if the sheet of paper has not been advanced far enough to-trip the combing roll before the drop roll is lowered by the action of the cam, the combing roll will be tripped by other means to stop the combing action on the topmost sheet of paper.

This means as shown is as follows Av curved arm 101 is mounted on the shaft 59 which carries the roll carrying arm 58.

See Fig. 3. The point of this curved arm is in such a position that as the shaft 59 is rocked to lower the drop roll 57, the point of this arm 101 will strike the finger 53 and cause it to be engaged by the ratchet 4:7 to raise the combing roll in a similar manner as though the finger 55 had been engaged by the sheet of paper.

In case it is desired to stop the feed of the sheets of paper without shutting off the driving mechanism, means are provided whereby a weight 102 pivoted on the end of the curved arm 101 may be swung over by hand, so that its end rests on top of the lever 53. Said weight 102 is shown as piv oted at 103 to a boss on said arm 101, and as shown in Fig. 3, the weight is turned back out of operative position. The pres ure of this weight on the lever 53 when it is turned down by hand, overcomes the action of the spring on the tripping shaft, and holds the lever 53 in engagement withthe ratchet 47, thus preventing the combing roll from being released to drop back on the pile of paper. l/Vhen the feed is to be started again, this weight isswung back out of engagement with the lever 53 and onto the top of the arm 101, asshown in Fig. 3.

What I claim is:

1. ,The combination with feeding mechanism of mechanism for arresting the action of the same comprising a rotating ratchet, a yieldable friction drive for said ratchet,

and a pawl actuated by the forward edge of an advancing sheet toengage with the teeth of said ratchet to arrest the rotation of the ratchet. r

2. The combination with feeding mechanism of mechanism 1" or arresting the action of'the same comprising a'rotating ratchet, a yieldable friction drive for said ratchet, and a pawl which is engaged with the ratchet by the action of the advancing sheet.

3. In a sheet feeding machine, a combing wheel, driving means to rotate said combing wheel, a rotating ratchet, a yieldable friction driving connection between said combing wheel and said ratchet to rotate the ratchet, means controlled by an advancing combed-out sheet to stop the rotation of the said ratchet, and means controlled by the resistance of the friction drive to raise the combing roll.

4. In a sheet feeding machine in combination, a combing roll and a shaft therefor,

means for constantly rotating said combing roll, a rotating ratchet driven from the combing roll shaft through a yieldable fric tion drive, means for lowering the combing roll to act on the top of a pile of sheets and tripping means controlled by the advancing edge of a combed out sheet to stop the rotation of the said friction driven ratchet and thereby through the frictional resistance of the friction drive, to raise said combing roll out of engagement with the top of the pile of sheets.

5. In a sheet feeding machine, a supply of sheets, a combing roll to act on the topmost sheets, a feed roll and a drop roll, means to arrest the. action of the combing roll when the top sheet has been advanced to a predetermined position between the feed roll and the drop roll, means to actuate the drop roll to grip the sheet between the feed rolland the drop roll, to withdraw the sheet from the feeding machine and means whereby the timeof operation of the drop roll may be manually varied while the feed is in operation.

6. A sheet feeding machine having in combination a combing roll anda rotary shaft therefor, a rocking yoke mount for the combing roll shaft, a rotary shaft on which said yoke is loosely mounted, means for continuously rotating the combing roll shaft, a gear and ratchet mounted loose on the yoke shaft, a yielding drivingconnection between said ratchet and said loose gear, means whereby the combing roll shaft and the loose gear and the ratchet are normall rotated together, and means actuated by the advancing sheet to prevent the ratchet from'being rotated and thereby through the yielding drive connection between the ratchet and loose gear to hold the said loose gear from rotation while the gear on the combing roll shaft continues to rotate in engagementwith said restrained loose gear whereby the yoke is rocked and raises the combing roll out of engagement with the sheet.

7. A sheet feeding machine having in combination a combing roll and a rotary shaft therefor, a rocking yoke mount for the combing roll shaft, a rotary shaft on which said yoke is loosely mounted, means for continuously rotating the combing roll shaft, a gear and ratchet mounted loose on the yoke shaft, a yielding driving connection between said ratchet and said loose gear, means whereby the combing roll shaft and the loose gear and the ratchet are normally rotated together, a rocking trip shaft, a fingermounted on said trip shaft, which is engaged by the advancing sheet to turn the trip shaft, and a trip finger also mounted on said trip shaft which when the said trip shaft is rocked by the advancing sheet engages the atchet and prevents it from being rotated, and thereby through the yielding drive connection between the ratchet and loose gear holds the said loose gear from rotation while the gear on the combing roll shaft continues to rotate in engagement with said restrained loose gear whereby the yoke is rocked and raises the combing roll out of engagement with the sheet.

8. A sheet feeding machine having in combination a combing roll and a rotary shaft therefor, a rocking yoke. mount for the combing roll shaft, a rotary shaft on which said yoke is loosely mounted, means for continuously rotating the combing roll shaft, gear and ratchet mounted loose on the yoke shaft, a yielding driving connection between said ratchet and said loose gear, means. whereby the combin roll shaft and the loose gear and the ratchet are normally rotated together, a feed roll for the sheet after it passes the combing roll, a drop roll cooperating with the feed roll, and means actuated by the advancing sheet t prevent the ratchet from being rotated, and thereby through the yielding drive connection between the ratchet and loose gear to hold the said loose gear from rotation while the gear on the combing roll shaft continues to rotate in engagement with said restrained loose gear, whereby the yoke is rocked and raises the combing roll out of engagement with the sheet.

9. A sheet feeding machine having in combination a combining roll and a rotary shaft therefor, a rocking yoke mount for the combing roll shaft, a rotary shaft on which said yoke is loosely mounted, means for.

continuously rotating the combing roll shaft,

a gear and ratchet mounted loose on the yoke shaft, a yielding driving connection between sa-id ratchet and said loose gear, means whereby the combing roll. shaft and the loose gear and the ratchet are normally rotated together, a feed roll for the sheet after it passes the combing roll, a drop roll coop crating with the feed roll, a rocking trip shaft, a finger mounted on said trip shaft which is engaged by the advancing sheet to turn the trip shaft, a trip finger also mounted on said trip shaf' which when the said trip shaft is rocked by the advancing sheet engages the ratchet and prevents it from being rotated, and thereby through the yielding drive connection between the ratchet and loose gear holds the said loose gear from rotation while the gear on the combing roll shaft continues to rotate in engagement with said restrained loose gear, whereby the yoke is rocked and raises the combing roll out of engagement with the sheet.

10. A sheet feeding machine having a support for a pile of blanks, a combing roll which normally engages the topmost sheet of the pile, means for rotating the combing roll and thereby combing out the topmost sheet from the remaining sheets in the pile beneath it, a feed roll and a drop roll between which the sheet is fed by the combing roll, means for causing the drop roll to drop into operative relation with the'feed roll, means actuated by the advancing sheet to trip the combing roll. before the drop roll comes into operative position, and sup plemental or safety means for tripping the combing roll controlled by the drop roll whereby the combing rOll will be tripped if the top sheet has not advanced far enough to actuate the first mentioned tripping mechanism before the drop roll engages with the feed roll. 7

ll. A sheet feeding machine having an elevator support for a pile of blanks, a feed roll, a downwardly hanging rod pivoted at its upper end and having a notch at its swinging end, a rotary shaft, a ratchet mounted fast on said shaft, a pawl carrier having a pawl which engages said ratchet,

Vmeans whereby at each rotation of the feed roll the said ratchet and its shaft will be partially rotated and raise the elevator a predetermined distance provided the said pawl is in position to engage the said ratchet a latch carried by said pawl carrier and adapted to be engaged with the notch in said rod to hold the said pawl out of engaging position with relation to the ratchet and thereby prevent rotation of the elevator shaft, means whereby the top of the pile of blanks maintains the said rod in position for engaging the latch as long as the top of the pile of blanks is above a predetermined. level, and means controlled by the lowering of the top of the pile of blanks to swing the rod and release said latch and allow the pawl to reengage the ratchet and cause the elevator to rise a predetermined distance.

12. A machine for feeding sheets having a support for a pile of sheets, a combing roll for combing the sheets one by one from the top' of the pile, a rotary feed roll to which the sheets are delivered by the combing roll, a drop roll cooperating with the feed roll, means for raising and lowering the drop roll periodically to thereby move the drop roll out of and into operative position with relation to the feed roll, a rotary cam which controls the mechanism for raising and lowering the drop roll, and means for adjusting the cam radially on its axis to vary the relative time when the operative portion of the cam will actuate the dropping of the drop roll.

13. A machine for feeding sheets having a support for a pile of sheets, means for combing out the sheets one by one'from the top, a rotary feed roll to which the sheets are delivered by the combing mechanism, a drop roll cooperating therewith, a rocker shaft carrying an arm on which said drop roll is mounted whereby it may be raised and low ered, a shaft having a cam which is radially adjustable thereon, a second arm mounted on said rocker shaft and carrying a roll which engages said cam, whereby the rotation of said cam actuates the raising and lowering of the drop roll once at each rota tion of the cam, and means for radially adjusting the cam on its shaft whereby the time of the lowering of the feed roll is vanced or retarded according to the adjustment.

14. A machine for feeding sheets having a support for a pile of sheets, means for combing out the sheets one by one from the top, a rotary feed roll to which the sheets are delivered by the combing mechanism,

drop roll cooperating therewith, a rocker shaft carrying an arm on which said drop roll is mounted whereby it may be raised and lowered, a shaft having a cam which is radially adjustablethereon, a second arm mounted on said rocker shaft and carrying a roll which engages said cam, whereby the rotation of said cam a-ctuates the raising and lowering of the drop roll once at each rotation of the cam, a worm gear plate fast to said cam and mounted loosely on said feed roll shaft, said cam being hollow formed with gear teeth on its inner periphery,-a pinion fast on thefeed roll shaft, gear connections between said pinion and the internal gear teeth on said cam, a worm which meshes-with the teeth on said gear plate, and means whereby said worm be manually operated to rotate said gear plate through such part of'a rotation as,

desired, and thereby through the train of I relative time of engagement of the operative portion of the cam with the roll on the rocker arm which actuates the lowering and raising of the drop roll.

15. A machine for feeding sheets having a support for a pile of sheets, a combing roll for combing the sheets one by one from the top of the pile, a rotary feed roll to which the sheets are delivered to the combing roll, a drop roll cooperating with the feed roll to feed the sheet, a shaft on which said feed roll is mounted having a cam loosely mounted thereon, means actuated by said cam to lower said drop roll into operative position with relation to the feed roll and raise it again at each rotation of the cam, a worm gear plate mounted loosely on the feed roll shaft and rigidly connected with said cam, a worm which engages with said gear plate,

means for manually operating said wormto rotate the gear plate through such portion of a single rotation as desired to adjust it on its axis and thereby adjust the said cam radially, the engagement of the worm with the gear plate maintaining the gear plate in its adjusted position, the change in the position of the cam on its axis causing a change in the timing of the raising and lowering of the drop roll. l

16. In combination with a rotary shaft, a worm gear plate loosely mounted thereon, .a cam loosely mounted on said shaft and rigidly connected with the face of said gear plate, said cam being hollow and formed with gear teeth on its inner periphery, a pinion fast on said shaft, gear connections between said pinion and the internal gear teeth on said cam, a worm which meshes with the teeth on said gear plate and journaled adjacent thereto, means whereby said worm may be manually operated to rotate said gear plate, and thereby through the train of gears which connect the shaft with the cam rotating said cam to radially adjust the camon its axis.

'17. A sheet feeding machine having an elevator for supporting a pile of blanks, means controlled by the position of the top most sheet in the pile to raise the elevator, a

combing roll which engages and combs out from the pile the topmost sheet therein, a rotating shaft, 'yolre mounted loose thereon having: iournaled in its swinging end a shaft on which said combing roll is mounted, gear connection between the yoke shaft and the combing roll shaftto constantly rotate said combine; roll shaft and roll, a ratchet and a sleeve fast together and both loose on said yoke shaft, a gear loose on said yoke shaft, driving connection between said combing roll shaft and said loose gear, a yielding driving connection between said'ratchetand said loose gear, whereby normally the ratchet and loose gear will be driven by the combing roll shaft, vmeans actuated by the advancing "sheet of paper to positively hold the ratchet against rotation thereby through the yielding drive connection to hold the loose gear against rotation while the combing roll shaft continues to rotate, and thereby by reason of the driving connection between the combing roll shaft and said loose gear to rock the combing roll yoke on its shaft and swing the combing roll up out of engagement with the sheet.

18. A sheet feeding machine having a support for a pile of blanks, a combing roll which engages and combs out the topmost sheet in the pile, a constantly rotating shaft on which said combing roll is mounted fast, a rocking mount for the combing roll shaft which'when it rocks raises and lowers the combing roll and its shaft, a rotary shaft on which said rocking mount is journaled, a ratchet loose on said last shaft, a yielding driving connection between said last shaft and the ratchet, a rocker shaft having a finger which normally projects into the path of the advancing topmost sheet and which when engaged by the advancing sheet is turned up, thereby turning said rocker shaft backward, a second finger carried by said rocker shaft which is adapted to be moved into and out of engagement with said ratchet and which when said rocker shaft is turned backward engages the said ratchet and resists the yielding drive con nection between. the ratchet and its shaft, and means controlled by the stopping of the rotation of the ratchet to rock the combing roll mount in a direction to lift the combing roll out of engagement with the sheet.

19. A sheet feeding machine having means for sup-porting a pile of blanks, means for combing out the sheets from the pile one at a time from the top, a feed roll and a drop roll between which the sheet is delivered by the combing roll, a rotary shaft on which said feed roll is mounted, means actuated by the rotation of said shaft whereby the drop roll is brought into operative position with relation to the feed roll to feed the sheet between the said feed roll and drop roll at a certain time in the rotation, and to raise the drop roll out'of operative position after a predetermined length of feed, and means whereby the rotation of the feed roll shaft also actuates the elevation of the support for the pile of blanks.

20. A sheet feeding machine having an elevator support for a pile of sheets, a rotary shaft, a feed roll mounted on said rotary shaft, a drop roll having a movable mount which carries the drop roll toward and away from the feed roll, means whereby the rotation of said shaft actuates the raising of the elevator, and means whereby the rotation of said shaft also actuates the dropping of the drop roll into operative relation to the feed roll.

21. A sheet feeding machine having a support for a pile of sheets, a rotary combing roll which engages and combs out the topmost sheet from the pile, a rocking yoke having a hub loosely mounted on a constantly driven shaft, said yoke having arms within which is journaled a constantly rotating shaft on which the said combing roll is mounted fast, a sleeve mounted loosely on said yoke hub shaft, a ratchet fast to said sleeve, a gear loose on said yoke hub shaft, a gear mounted fast on the combing roll shaft and engaging said loose gear, a yielding drive connection between the said ratchet and loose gear, a rotary feed roll, a drop roll adapted to engage with said feed roll, said feed roll and drop roll being so located that the sheet is caused by the combing roll to pass between the feed roll and the drop roll, a rocker shaft having an arm in which said drop roll is mounted, whereby the drop roll is raised and lowered, a rocking trip shaft carrying a finger which projects into the path of the advancing sheet and is engaged by said sheet to move the finger and thereby turn the trip shaft, a second finger carried-by said trip shaft which when the trip shaft is turned by the advancing sheet is caused to engage with said ratchet and restrain it from rotation and thereby through the yielding drive connection with the said loose gear to restrain the said loose gear from rotation, said gear connection between the combing roll shaft and the said loose gear causing the combing roll to be raised out of operative relation to the pile of sheets when the said loose gear is held from rotation, and means for causing the trip shaft to rock in the reverse direction and release the detent from the ratchet when the sheet has passed out of engagement with said first finger.

22. A sheet feeding machine having a support for a pile of sheets, a rotary combing roll which engages and combs out the topmost sheet from the pile, a rocking yoke having a hub loosely mounted on a constantly driven shaft, said yoke having arms within which is journaled a constantly rotating shaft on which the said combing roll is mounted fast, a sleeve mounted loosely on said yoke hub shaft, a ratchet fast to said sleeve, a gear loose on said yoke hub shaft, a gear mounted fast on the combing roll shaft and engaging said loose gear, a yielding drive connection between the said ratchet and loose gear, a rotary fed roll, a drop roll adapted to engage with said feed roll, said feed roll and drop roll being so located that the sheet is caused by the combing roll to pass between the feed roll and the drop roll, a rocker shaft having an arm in which said drop roll is mounted, whereby the drop roll is raised and lowered, a rocking trip shaft carrying a finger which projects into the path of the advancing sheet and is engaged by said sheet to move the finger and thereby turn the trip shaft, a second finger carried by said trip shaft which when the trip shaft is turned by the advancing sheet is caused to engage with said ratchet and restrain it from rotation and thereby through the yielding drive connection with the said loose gear to restrain the said loose gear from rotation, said gear connection between the combing roll shaft and the said loose gear causing the combing roll to be raised out of operative relation to the pile of sheets when the said loose gear is held from rotation, and means for causing the trip shaft to rock in the reverse direction and release thedetent from the ratchet when the sheet has passed out of engagement with said first finger, said releasing means comprising a releasing rocker shaft, a pawl mounted on an arm carried by said releasing shaft and adapted to engage with'said ratchet, a' lever mounted on said releasing shaft which is engaged by a cam mounted on the feed roll shaft, said cam being so arranged as to cause the said releasing pawl to engage the ratchet and turn the said ratchet in a direction to allow the disengagement of the detent finger from the said ratchet and the continued movement of the said cam causing said releasing shaft to rotate in a reverse direction and disengage the said releasing pawl, thereby allowing the said ratchet to rotate with the combing roll shaft, and thereby permit the dropping of the combing roll into operative position.

i 23. A sheet feeding machine having a support for a pile of sheets, a rotary combing roll which engages and combs out the topmost sheet from the pile, a rocking yoke having a hub loosely mounted on a constantly driven shaft, said yoke having-arms within which is journaled a constantly rotating shaft on which the said combing roll is mounted fast, a sleeve mounted loosely on said yoke hub shaft, a ratchet fast to said sleeve, a gear loose on said yoke hub shaft, a gear mounted fast on the combing roll shaft and engaging said loose gear, a yielding drive connection between the said ratchet and loose gear, a rotary feed roll, a drop roll adapted to engage with said feed roll, said feed roll and drop roll being so located that the sheet is caused by the combing roll to pass between the feed roll and the drop roll, said drop roll being mounted in an arm carried on a rocker shaft, whereby the drop roll is raised and lowered, a rocking trip shaft carrying a finger which projects into the path of the advancing sheet and is engaged by said sheet to move the finger and thereby turn the trip shaft, a second finger carried by said trip shaft whichwhen the trip shaft is turned by the advancing sheet is caused to engage with said ratchet and restrain it from rotation'and thereby through the yielding drive connection with the said loose gear to restrain the said loose gear from rotation, said gear connection between the combing roll shaft and the said loose gear causing the combing roll to be raised out of operative relation to the pile of sheets when the said loose gear is held from rotation, and means for causing the trip shaft to roci; in the reverse direction and release the detent from the ratchet when the sheet has passed out of engagement with said first finger, the combing roll yoke being formed with forked arms which straddle said releasing shaft and which are spaced apart sufiiciently to allow a limited rocking movement of the yoke with relation to the releasing shaft.

24. A sheet feeding machine having in combination a support for a pile of sheets, a combing roll, a rocking mount therefor whereby the combing roll may be raised and lowered with relation to the pile of sheets,'means for rotating the combing roll whereby when the combing roll is in engagement with the topmost sheet it combs out the topmost sheet from the pile, means actuated by the advancing sheet to raise the combing roll out of engagement with the sheet at a predetermined point in its advance, means for again depressing the combing roll at a predetermined point in the rotation of the combing roll, a presser member mounted on a rocker shaft, said presser member extending over the top of the pile of sheets in position to engage the next to the topmost sheet at the rear of the topmost sheet which has already been advanced somewhat from the remaining sheets of the pile for engagement with the combing roll, a cam carried by the rocking combing roll mount which engages said presser member and forces it'down upon said next to the top most sheet at the same time that the combing roll is broughtrinto engagement with the partially advanced topmost sheet, and means for lifting the said presser member whi h is so timed with relation to the means for depressing the combing roll that the said presser member will be released when the combing roll is raised from engagement with the said topmost sheet.

The combination in a sheet feeding machine of means for combing out the topmost sheet of a pile of sheets, auxiliary means for subsequently delivering the sheet from the combing-out mechanism, means controlled by the combed-out sheet for arresting the action of the combing mechanism when the sheet has reached a predetermined position, and supplemental means automati cally actuated independently of the combedout sheet for arresting the action of the combing mechanism if the said sheet has not reached the predetermined position when the auxiliary delivery means starts to act.

26. The combination in a sheet feeding machine of means for combing out the topmost sheet of a pile of sheets, means controlled by the combed-out sheet for arresting the action of the combing mechanism when the sheet has reached a predetermined position, auxiliary means for subsequently delivering the sheet from the combing-out mechanism consisting of a feeding roll and a drop roll, means for moving the drop roll to grip the combed-out sheet between the feeding roll and the drop roll and supple mental safety means for tripping the combing roll controlled by the movement of the drop roll to trip the combing mechanism if the advancing sheet has not advanced far enough to actuate the first mentioned tripping mechanism before the drop roll engages with the feed roll.

27. in combination with sheet feeding mechanism, mechanism for receiving the sheet from the said feed and delivering it to a further point, feed arresting mechanism controlled by the advancing sheet and auxiliary feed arresting mechanism actuated independently of the advancing sheet and timed in relation to the said sheet delivering mechanism to arrest the said feeding mechanism if the sheet has not reached a predetermined position with relation to the sheet delivering mechanism.

28. In combination with sheet feeding mechanism, timed sheet delivery mechanism, feed arresting mechanism controlled by the advancing sheet, auxiliary feed arresting mechanism to coact with the sheet delivery mechanism, and means for actuating the said auxiliary feed arresting mechanism independently of the advancing sheet if the sheet has not advanced to a predetermined position with relation to the said sheet delivery mechanism.

29. A sheet feeding machine having in combination a combing roll for combing out a sheet from a pile, a drop roll and a feed roll between which the sheet is fed by the combing rol'l, means controlled by the combed-out sheet to raise the combing roll out of contact with the sheet when the sheet has reached a predetermined position, means by which the drop roll is raised and lowered, and means whereby the lowering of the drop roll will actuate the mechanism for raising the combing roll if the advancing sheet has not already reached the predetermined position for actuating the mechanism to raise the combing roll.

30. The combination in a sheet feeding machine of means for combing out the topmost sheet of a pile of sheets, means controlled by the combed-out sheet for arresting the action of the combing mechanism when the sheet has reached a inedetermined position, auxiliary means for subsequently delivering the sheet from the combing-out mechanism consisting of a feeding roll and a drop roll, means for moving the drop roll to grip the combed-out sheet between the feeding roll and the drop roll and supplemental safety means independent of the advancing sheet for actuating the tripping of the combing roll, said supplemental mechanism being actuated by the same mechanism which actuates the drop roll to trip the combing mechanism if the advancing sheet has not advanced far enough to actuate the first mentioned tripping mechanism before the drop roll engages with the feed roll.

31. In combination with sheet feeding mechanism, mechanism for receiving the sheet from the said feed and feeding it to further point, mechanism controlled by the advancing sheet to arrest said first feed, and auxiliary feed arresting mechanism actuated independently of the advancing sheet and timed in relation to "the said second sheet feed mechanism to arrest the said first feeding mechanism if the sheet has not reached a predetermined position by means of said first feed With relation to the said second feed mechanism.

32. In combination with sheet feeding mechanism, timed mechanism for receiving the sheet from said first feed and feeding it to a further point, mechanism controlled by the advancing sheet to arrest the said first feed, and auxiliary arresting mechanism for the first feed actuated by the mechanism which controls the second feed.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

GEORGE A. ROBINSON. 

